Double Deep Pallet Racking
Two pallets deep from a single aisle. Around 30% more pallet positions with standard racking, standard floors and one change to your truck spec - designed, supplied and installed across the South West.
Get a Free Quote
Double deep pallet racking: 30% more positions, one simple change
Double deep pallet racking places two rows of standard racking back-to-back, accessed from a single aisle by trucks with telescopic forks. Half your aisles disappear, and in their place you gain roughly 30% more pallet positions - without the floor works, guidance systems or specialist fleet that very narrow aisle racking demands.
For warehouses that hold several pallets of each SKU, it's frequently the best value density upgrade available: the racking is conventional, the layout is familiar, and the only operational change is the reach truck's extending forks.
We design, supply and install double deep racking across Somerset and the South West, new and used, and we'll model it against your current layout so you can see exactly what the extra positions cost - and earn.
How double deep racking works
Each location holds two pallets, one behind the other. The truck places the rear pallet first using telescopic forks (or a double-deep reach mechanism), then the front pallet in the same lane. Retrieval reverses the process - so the system suits stock held two-or-more pallets per SKU, with the same product in front and rear positions.
Selectivity and rotation
Double deep racking gives 50% direct selectivity: the front pallet of every pair is immediately accessible, the rear requires the front to move first. Managed by a WMS - or simply by lane discipline - rotation stays clean and put-away rates stay high. It's a halfway house between fully selective wide aisle racking and deep-lane systems like push back or drive-in.
What you'll need
A double deep capable reach truck, slightly wider aisles than standard reach truck operation (typically around 2.9-3.2m), and beam levels set for the extra lift height the telescopic forks need. Existing adjustable pallet racking can usually be reconfigured into double deep pairs - often reusing most of what you own.
What double deep racking does for you
Around 30% more pallets
Halving the aisle count adds substantial positions in the same footprint - typically 25-35% depending on your current layout.
No floor upgrade
Unlike guided VNA, double deep runs on standard slabs with no guidance rails or wires - survey, install, operate.
Reuses your racking
Existing APR frames and beams are usually re-deployable into double deep pairs - we'll confirm at survey.
Familiar operation
Drivers keep working from aisles in the normal way; only the fork cycle changes. Training takes hours, not weeks.
Scales by zone
Run double deep for reserve stock and keep fast picks in standard bays - mixed schemes are common and we design them daily.
Lower cost per position
Per pallet stored, double deep is consistently among the cheapest density upgrades available.
The honest trade-offs
Double deep racking stores pallets two positions deep, which roughly halves the number of aisles you need compared with single-deep racking and typically adds 30 to 40 percent more pallet positions to the same floor area. The trade is selectivity: the rear pallet is only reachable once the front one moves, so it suits operations where each product line occupies at least two pallets at a time.
You will need a reach truck with telescopic forks or a pantograph attachment to serve the second position; standard forks cannot reach. Existing truck options, beam levels, rack heights and clearances are checked before steel is ordered. New and suitable used components can be compared where the system and condition are known, while the conversion programme is agreed around the live picking operation and available access.
Double Deep Racking FAQs
Converting a typical wide aisle layout to double deep adds around 25-35% more pallet positions, depending on building shape and how many aisles you eliminate. We produce before/after CAD layouts so the gain is measured, not guessed.
Reach trucks fitted with telescopic forks or a purpose-built double-deep mast. Several mainstream manufacturers offer them, and many fleets can be converted. Aisle widths of roughly 2.9-3.2 metres suit most models - we design around the exact truck you'll run.
Usually, yes. Standard adjustable pallet racking frames and beams can be re-spaced into back-to-back pairs with new run spacers and revised beam levels. We inspect what you have, reuse what's sound and supply matching components for the rest.
It works best when you hold at least two pallets per SKU, so front and rear positions carry the same product. Operations with hundreds of single-pallet SKUs are better served by narrow aisle racking, which keeps every pallet directly accessible.
Compare your options
Density comes in several flavours. These are the systems we'd compare it against.